Improvement in brick and tile machines



C. D. WRIGHTINGTON.

Brick and Tile Machine.

N0.13,432. Patented Mag/18,1875.

THE GRAPHBC CO.PHDTOLITN.39&41 PARK PLACLN-Y.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES D. WRIGHTINGTON, OF FAIRHAVEN, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN BRICK AND TILE MACHINES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 163,432, dated May 18,1875; application iled April 15, 1874.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES D. WRIGHT-INGToN, of Fairhaven, in the county of Bristol and State ofMassachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inBrick and Tile Making Machines, of which the following is aspecification:

In the accompanying drawings the same letters refer to like parts in allthe figures.

Figure l is a sectional side elevation of the machine, showing thoseparts to the left of the line A2 A2, Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a front or endelevation of the machine. Fig. 3 is a plan of the bottom plate of thepug-mill also showing the posts which support the pug-mill; also showingthe opening into the mud-boX, and the ends and mouth-pieces of the same;also the friction-rollers which hold the gear in place, which rotatesthe pug-mill shaft. Fig. 4 is a plan of the gear which rotates thepugmill shaft; also the annular ring which forms a part of the pug-mill,and to which the inclined forcing-blades are secured.

A A are the .side frames, which are made strong and heavy enough toresist the strains of the moving parts of the machine. H H is the bottomplate of the pug-mill, and also con nects the upper ends of the frames AA. It also forms the top h h and sides b b of the mudboX. A is thepug-mill or hopper, in which the clay is tempered. B is the pug-millshaft, 011 which are placed knives for tempering the clay. It is notdeemed needful to show these knives in the drawing, as they are a commondevice. B2 is the yoke which forms a bearing for the upper end of thepug-mill shaft B. G Gr is a -flange extending around the lower part ofthe pug-mill, by which the pug-mill is secured to the bottom plate H H,or to the frame-work of the machine. F F, Figs. l and 2, and F F F F,Fig. 3, are the posts which rise from the bottom plate H H, and to whichthe pug-mill A is secured by means of the ange Gr Gr. E E is abevel-gear, which rotates the pug-mill shaft B, and forms the lower partof the pug-mill A. C, Fig. 1, and C C O C, Fig. 4, are inclined bladesor arms, which act as a screw or a propeller to force the clay into themud-box or other receptacles for the clay. The inclined blades G C C CVserve the purpose of arms or spokes for the bevel-gear E E. E', Fig. 2,is a bevelpinion, which rotates the gear E E. D is the mud-box, the topand sides of which are formed by the bot tom plate H H. I is anabutment, which acts as a lpiston for forcing the clay from the mudboxD. V V are the moutlrpieces of the mud-box. J J is an oscillatingsegment, which forms the fourth and lower side or bottom of the mud-boxD. To the center of the segment J J, the abutment or piston I issecured. K K are radial arms, which secure the segment J J to the hub K.L is the fulcrum on which the segment oscillates. driving-shaft to whichthe bevel-pinion E is secured. I?l is a pinion, which rotates the wheelI? and shaft m; this in turn rotates the crank M. N is a connecting-rod,secured to the wrist-pin m in the crank M and to the wrist-pin N' in thearm K of the segment J J.

I have divided my invention into two principal parts. The rst partrelates to the combination of the pug mill or hopper of a brick ortilemachine, with the mechanism which rotates the pug-mill shaft, andthe inclined blades or arms which force the clay into the mud-box orinto the molds of a brick or tile machine.

rIhe following is a detailed description of the rst part of myinvention: A is the pug-mill, which may be of the usual form, the topbeing attached to the iian ge G G, below which it must l be circular. Bis the pug-mill shaft, on which are placed the usual knives fortempering the clay before it is forced into the mudbox or otherreceptacle. To the lower part of this shaft are secured the inclinedblades G C C C. These inclined blades may be of the usual form, with theexception of having the driving-gear attached directly to their outerends. E is the bevel-gear, which rotates the inclined blades C C C C andthe pug-mill shaft B, and which is attached to the outer ends of theinclined blades aforesaid, and it also forms a continuation of the lowerpart ofthe pug-mill.

I do not wish to limit my invention to the use of a bevel-gear, as aspur-gear may be used with equal facility when the form of the machineadmits of it. The said gear receives its motion from the bevel-pinion E,Fig. 2.

The pug-mill A is supported by means of the fiange G Gr, which restsupon the posts F P2 is the F, Figs. l and 2, and F F F F, Fig. 3, whichrise from the bottom plate H II of the pugmill A', or the frame-work ofthe machine. The posts are placed far enough apart to admit of thebevel-gear being placed within them.

The sides of the pug-mill A. are extended a sufficient distance belowthe flange G G to admit the bevel-gear E E, or the interior of saidgear, to encompass the said extension of the pug-mill, for the purposeof preventing the leakage of clay. The bevel-gear E E is connected toand forms a part of the annular ring e c. This annular ring is ex tendedbelow the teeth of the gear E E, in order to provide a surface forfriction-rollers to roll on. From the inner surface of the annular ringe e the inclined blades C G O G extend to the center hub e', into` whichthe pug-mill shaft B is secured. The annular ring e e forms acontinuation of the pug-mill A', and extends up and around the lowerpart of the pug-mill A for the purpose of covering or breaking the jointat the under edge of the pug-mill. The internal diameter of the annularring c e is somewhat greater than the diameter of the pugmill, in orderthat the clay may pass freely over the said ring. The annular ring e ealso extends down into the bottom plate H H or into a lip thereon, asufficient distance to prevent the leakage of clay. The bevel-gear E Eis held in position laterally by means of four friction-rollers, a a aa, (Figs. 2 and 3,) which are attached to the inner sides of the posts FF F F, and which touch the outer surface of the annular ring e e andallow it to rotate freely. The lower end of the pug-mill shaft Brequires no other bearing.

The objects of this part of my invention are as follows: First, toenable me to apply the power directly to the inclined blades orpropellers, which perform the burden of the work of forcing the clayinto the mud-box or molds, as the case may be.. Second, it also admitsof the pug-mill shaft being rotated from its lower end, without beingcompelled to extend the said shaft below the mud-box D. Third, it admitsof the mud-box D being placed directly under the center of the pugmillA', which gives the largest possible opening from the pug-mill into themud-box D. Fourth, the inclined blades C C C C are very muchstrengthened by the annular ring e e, which unites them firmly together,which is of great importance.

The second part of my invention relates to the combination of a mud-boxwith an oscillating or reciprocating segment or side, which extends theentire length of the mud-box, and the extent of its own movement inaddition, and which forms one or more sides of the mud-box, (in thiscase the bottom side,) and with an abutment or projection on the surfaceof the segment or side, which operates as a piston or plunger forforcing the clay from the mud-box.

In Fig. 1, D is a circular mud-box, which requires an oscillatingsegment, J J, with arms KKextending to hub K', or fulcrum L. In place ofa circular mud-box a straight box may be used, and one or more of thesides may be made to reciprocate. I is the abutment or piston whichtravels to and fro the length of the mud-box. M is a rotating crank,which causes the segmentJ J to oscillate, and where a straight mud-boxis used it will be reciprocated by the said crank. The connectionbetween the crank M and the seglnent J J, is formed by the wrist-pin min. the said crank, the connecting-rod N, and the wrist-pin I in the armK of the segment J J. m is the crankshaft, which is rotated by thecog-wheel P, which in turn is rotated by the pinion P1 on thedrivingshaft P2. O is a bracket which supports the outer ends of theshafts on' and P2.

The objects of this part of my invention are as follows: First, I amenabled to lnake a double-acting machine, by using the oscillatingsegment J J, with the abutment or piston I at the center' of the arc ofthe said segment, and by having an outlet or mouthpiece V V at each endof the mud-box D. The machine thus produces double the amount of bricksproduced by sin gle-acting machines, and with about the same amount ofmachinery as in a single-acting machine. Second, by making the segment JJ the bottom of the mud-box, the friction thereon is almost entirelydone away with, inasmuch as the segment moves at the same rate of speedas the clay in the mud-box, thus requiring much less power to force theclay through the mouthpieces V V than would be the case were the claycompelled to slide over a fixed bottom to the mud-box. Third, byconstructing the machine as described, the heavy-moving parts of themachine are placed near the base of the machine and in close connectionwith each other, thus insuring great strength and stability with theleast amount of material most favorably disposed.

I do not wish to limit my invention to the precise arrangement shown inthe drawings. I have represented this arrangement as I consider it themost convenient, and economical in the use of material and space.

The segment J J may be placed in a horizontal position, and the mud-boxbe made to conform to it, without materially changing the machine orimpairing its effectiveness 5 and, in some cases, it may be desirable todo so. In that case the bottom side, as well as the segment, could bemade to oscillate.

lHaving now described the nature and objects of my invention, I willdescribe the operation of the machine as follows, v'iz Power beingapplied to the driving-shaft P2 causes the bevel-pinion E to rotate,which, in turn, rotates the bevel-gear E E, the annular ring 0 e, theinclined blades C C C C, and the pugmill shaft B. The pinion P1 on thedrivingshaft P2 rotates the cog-wheel P, the shaft m, and crank M. Bymeans of the connectingrod N the segment J J and the piston I are causedto oscillate the required distance. The clay is then thrown into thepug-mill A', and is mixed and tempered in the usual manner. The clay isthen pressed into the mud-box D by the inclined blades C C G C. The clayis then alternately forced out at each end of the mud-box D andmouth-pieces V V by the oscillating segment J J and piston I. Themouthpieces V V form the clay into a strip or ribbon suitable to be cutup into bricks.

I claim as my inventionl. In a brick or tile machine, the pug-mill A',the lower part of said pug-mill or hopper being formed by the rim of thedriving gear E, or by an extension of said rim, or by an annular ring,connected to the said gear E, substantially and for the purpose setforth.

2. ln a brick or tile machine, the mud-box or compressing-chamber,having the piston or plunger I secured to the rocking or oscillatingsegment J J, the latter forming the bottom of said mud-box, and the twohaving a movement in unison, for the purpose set forth.

3. 'Ihe combination of the pug-mill or hopper A', having the flange G G,with the posts F F F F, and the bottom plate H H, for the purclinedradial blades or propellers C C C C, for the purpose set forth.

6. The combination ofthe bevel-gear E, having the annular ring ce, withthe friction-rollers a a a a, for the purpose set forth.

7. The combination ofthe bevel-gear E, the pinion E', the annular ring ee, and the radial inclined blades G C O C, with the bottomplate H H, asdescribed, and for the purpose set forth.

8. The combination of the gear E, the annular ring e e, and the radialinclined blades G C C C, with the mud-box D or other receptacle for theclay, as described, and for the purpose- Set forth.

9. The combination of the pug-mill A' with a segmental mud-box, D, asdescribed, and for purpose set forth.

10. The combination of the mud-box D and the mouth-pieces V V with thepiston I and the oscillating` segment J J, as described, and for thepurpose set forth.

11. The combination of the oscillating segment J J, the radial arms K K,and the hub K', with the side frames A A and the bottom plate H H, asdescribed, and for the purpose set forth.

12. rIhe plunger I, oscillating upon the arc of a circle Jfrom end toend of a mud-box, and under the main shaft B, as and for the purposedescribed.

CHARLES D. WRIGHTINGTON.

Witnesses:

NELsoN GoLLINs, NATHAN B. ELLIS.

